Sapphire and Onyx
by Mitsuyuki-Hime
Summary: In the year 2022, the first VRMMORPG was created. 10,000 people bought and played the game, only to discover it to be a death trap. Now, it's a fight for survival as it seems no one can respawn after a death. This is the story of those trapped inside a virtual world of swords. KiritoXOC Kirito/OC KiritoOC
1. Ch 1: The Golden-Haired Avatar

**I don't own Sword Art Online, but I own Haruko and my friend, Maylay, owns Reito.**

**Please no flames, since this is my first FanFiction, but reviews are welcome!**

* * *

Chapter One: The Golden-Haired Avatar

"Finally!" I shouted.

I retrieved a small cardboard box from my doorstep and dropped it on my desk, grabbing a pair of scissors from a desk compartment and hurriedly opened it with a pair of scissors.

I retrieved my very own copy of Sword Art Online from the box and squealed in delight, cradling the game case to my chest.

I heard a loud ring and look at the analog clock hanging above me. The hands pointed to 12:30 PM.

_Crap, I have to go set up all this stuff!_

And so, I spent the last 30 minutes before SAO's launch trying to connect all the wires and setting up my account.

Soon, the clock struck one.

"LINK START!"

I felt a surge go through my body and my view changed from the ceiling of my room through a black visor to simply bright white.

I did a test on my five senses and logged into my account.

Soon, multiple pillars of bluish light zoomed past my view and the words _Welcome to Sword Art Online_ popped up.

I virtualized in a large plaza, blending in with the crowd of players that seemed to have arrived at the same moment. I looked around in awe of the beautiful digital architecture.

I spotted a beautiful large fountain nearby and ran to it. I looked down to the cerulean blue waters to see my reflection.

My avatar had yellow, cat-like eyes and blonde hair up to the neck with a few strands sticking out of place.

I frowned a bit. _Dang it, I knew I should have brushed my hair better before calibrating!_

Though, I smiled brightly, happy to be back in the world of swords, and immediately began a mad dash towards the West Fields.

"Yo, Blondie!" someone called out.

I stopped and turned to look towards the voice, but saw nothing.

"Down here!" The voice said and I felt a tug on my shirt.

I then lower my gaze down to see a pair of brown eyes staring right back.

"May I help you?"

Short Stack was 4"1", has latte brown hair that reaches her shoulders, and freckles sprayed onto the bridge of her nose like someone dumped pepper on her. Her face just gives me the feeling that she was the cool and sophisticated type. If I'm correct, then like all those of that type, they were blabbermouths.

"Well that depends, can you help me, **_beta tester_**_?_"

"Sorry what?"

"Oh come on! I know you're a beta tester!"

"Yeah so?" I raised an eyebrow.

The midget bowed low, well I least I think she did. Who can tell with her height?

"Could you help me? I know I don't look like it, but I'm really tough! This is my first time playing an MMORPG without my friends!" She pleaded.

I exhaled a heavy sigh and shook my head, even though the girl couldn't see past her thick curtain of hair.

_I should have known this was bound to happen sooner or later. I better get it over with and tell her get lost._

Then, she lifted her head and gave me these huge, teary doe eyes.

"O-Ok. Yeah sure," I smiled a bit.

_Curse those stupid eyes; they made me lose my resolve! Though, they do remind me of an old friend of mine..._

I pointed my right finger up and said, "There's just one condition."

"What's that?" The girl asked as she gets up.

"What's your name, oh pupil of mine?"

"Haha, well my name's Reito," she laughs.

"Cool, I'm Haruko," I replied with a wide grin.

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**Please R&R!**


	2. Ch 2: Sword Skills For Dummies

**I don't own Sword Art Online, but I own Haruko and my friend, Maylay, owns Reito.**

**Enjoy reading Sapphire and Onyx and please no flames!  
**

**Warning, Haruko's Spanish is horrible!**

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Chapter Two: Sword Skills for Dummies

I watched as Reito got a headbutt from a boar.

"_Ow_! That's one stupid, hardheaded pig!" Reito groaned as she rubbed her head.

"If you felt that, then I must be a sumo wrestler," I said as I rolled my eyes.

"You're a sumo wrestler?!" Reito gasped. "Oh wait, you can't feel pain in the game."

If it was possible, I rolled my eyes even more.

"Let me show you," I replied as I went through my inventory.

I materialized one Frenzy Boar Hide and held the upper part with my left hand.

Then, I grabbed a nearby stick with my right hand and threw it at a nearby Frenzy Boar.

It swiveled in the air and bonked it on the head. An irk mark formed on the boar's forehead near the glowing red bump on its head.

It charged forward as I yelled, "Oinko! Oinko!"

It headed straight for me, but I sidestepped and it ran straight into the hide.

"Olé!"

The pig grunted and shook its head wildly.

Reito watched me with a sweat drop on her forehead. "Is this really necessary?"

"Quiet, young cricket. This is a lesson you must learn to survive this world."

Another sweat drop appeared. "What kind of lesson is this? And what the hell happened to grasshopper?"

"Eh, tomato _tomato_."

I began some sort of routine with the boar and we danced back and forth in an endless frenzy.

Soon I sighed, "This was fun, but I'm getting bored now."

Reito jumped up from the rock she was sitting on for sometime, I don't know when, and shouted, "Finally! Worst bull fighting ever!"

"Shut up, it was amazing!"

The [Frenzy Boar] charged once more, but this time I rolled the hide up like a newpaper.

"Pay close attention, Reito."

I activated one of my skills and the hide became enveloped in a fiery sapphire glow.

Reito made a slight gasp at the sight.

"As you fight, you slowly feel a warmth growing somewhere in the depths of your abdomen. When that happens, you can activate your ability."

Reito groaned, "English, please."

I grinned, "Don't you mean Japanese?"

She groaned again, "Whatever!"

"When you get a fire in your belly, you use it completely to your advantage!"

The boar soon reached me and I sidestepped it once more and I smack its bottom hard with the hide.

The [Frenzy Boar] snorted and disappeared into a cluster of bright data.

I turn to look at Reito, "So, do you get it now?"

"Yeah!"

I smiled at Reito. _Finally, she gets it._

"When you have heartburn, then you can use your sword skill!"

My smile cracked.

"Well," I said angrily, "It's your turn!"

Reito scoffed, "Easy!"

I smirked, "You think so, eh? Go ahead and take a go, hot shot."

She smirked back, "With pleasure."

I sneaked up on the Frenzy Boar that had headbutted Reito and smacked it towards her.

Reito had a hand on the hilt of her sword.

"Time to turn this pig into bacon!" Reito smirked wryly.

When the hog was just about to skewer her, Reito took out her weapon and sliced the swine through the side of its chest, with a trail of sea green following the blade.

The boar's HP turns scarlet and it changes into shining pixels.

"Oh yeah!" Reito exclaimed while fist pumping. "I totally owned that devil of a hog! In your face, Haruko!"

I smiled a little bit at the sight I saw; she really does remind me of that friend of mine.

Reito turned to beam at me.

"Thanks for all you taught me, Haruko!" she said with a fist in front of me.

I gave Reito a big smile at the sight of this.

"I couldn't have done it without you, man!"

I smiled wider when I hear this. "No problem!" I replied with a fist bump.

"Well, that was a good battle, though I never thought I would beat that boss!"

I raised an eyebrow at this statement. "Boss? That was just a Lv 5 Frenzy Boar, quite common too."

Several more of the creature spawned where there two copies originally stood after I finished speaking.

"Eh?! I thought I actually killed something worthwhile!"

"Well that was an incorrect thought, but never mind that, I'll whip you into shape no time!"

"Wait, we're _not_ done training?"

"No, now come on, we have to get more EXP if we expect to make it to the 100th floor."

"What? Aincrad has 100 floors?!"

"Yes, now stop slacking off!"

"Aw come on! Give me a break, dude!"

"No breaks for slackers!" I smacked her head with the rolled-up hide.

"Wahhh! Gomenesai!" She teared up while holding her head.

*After my intense training*

We both collapsed onto the grass out of pure exhaustion and laziness, due to the fact that gamers _really _don't get much exercise. Then, we just haphazardly laid there, enjoying the cool virtual breeze and naming the creations made of the clouds in Aincrad.

After a nice long rest, I sat up and took a look at the emerald plains of the West Field that were filled with both Frenzy Boars and players alike. I didn't really see anything catch my interest when two dots appeared in my gaze. I squinted at them to get a closer look, seeing a raven-haired boy and a crimson-headed fellow.

_It couldn't be, could it?_

The former slung his sword over his shoulder and I gasped.

_Only one person I know has a funky black hairdo and casually holds his sword like that!_

I jumped into standing position and immediately began sprinting over there.

"What? Hey, Haruko, where are you going?" Reito shouted as she abruptly stood up from her spot on the field

I didn't even slow down when I heard her.

"Hey, wait up!" Reito yelled as she dashed to catch up with me.

I kept running, keeping my eyes on the blackette with his back turned to me.

_Please be him and not a different player! I will die of embarrassment if I do this to the wrong ravenette!_

"Kirito, look out behind you!" Red Head warned.

_It _has _to be him!_

"KIRITO!" I yelled.

Said boy turned to face my voice and I hugged him.

The force of the embrace sent him pummeling to the ground with a thud.

"Oi, Haruko, what are you doing?!" Reito said exhaustedly as she finally caught up to me.

"Kirito, are you okay?" Red Head asked worriedly.

"I'm f-fine, Klein. I-is that you Ha-Haruko?!" Kirito wondered.

I let go to see his way too mature face. He had black eyes the shade of coal and medium-length raven hair with his long side bangs poofing out.

"It really is you!" I said with joy.

"Yup!" He replied with a toothy grin.

"Now I can finish what we started!" I roared and punched him in the gut.


	3. Ch 3: Fond Memories of A Plant

Sorry for the long wait! Here's the chapter that you people have been waiting for! Please enjoy!

Chapter Three: Fond Memories of An Overgrown Plant

Kirito tumbled back to the ground from the force of my punch.

"Daijoubu[1], Kirito?" Kirito's redhead friend walked over to help him, but Reito stopped him with her right arm.

"Dude, you don't want to get in Haruko's way, trust me." Reito said seriously.

The redhead seemed as though he was still going to help Kirito, but after taking one glance at my murderous aura, he gladly stayed where he was.

"Damn, Haruko." Kirito grunted while rubbing his abdomen. "What was that for?"

I shook tremendously while holding my right hand in a fist. "You left me in a dungeon full of aggros. I should corpse camp you for how long it took for me to get out."

Kirito sweat dropped at me. "Wa-wait, it's not my fault, Haruko!" He frantically waved his arms around. "This is just a big misunderstanding!"

"Oh bite me!" I snarled. "We spent all that time together, only for you to abandon me when I needed you!"

_I remember that day like it was yesterday. It was the last dungeon we ever took on together._

**August 2022 (During Beta Testing)**

**Floor 6: Vitis**

Vitis was a floor full of nothing, but tropical fruit trees, banana groves, and beautiful blossoms. You could hear the light, joyful twitter of birds and swim with the dolphins in the river.

Oh and it's full of aggros, did I mention that? Aggros that will chew you up and spit you back out.

And repeat.

And repeat.

And repeat!

And that's just the monsters in the daytime…

You'd be lucky if you could find an NPC here, not to mention one that would sell you crystals.

Basically, it was a floor fit for only those who want to do hardcore training. A "survival of the fittest" floor, I suppose. No one should expect a vacation in this tropical forest. And guess who was napping right under a mango tree?

"Ne, Kirito?" I watched Kirito as he snored.

I bent down and leaned near Kirito's face.

"Ki-ri-to!" I poked his cheek with every syllable.

"Urusai[2] Haruko." He swatted my hand away and opened his eyes, only to see my face.

"Whoa, too close!" Kirito backed up into the tree and bumped his head into the trunk.

"Itai[3]!" He rubbed his head and I stifled a laugh.

Sword Art Online hadn't really perfected their pain absorber function yet, so all the fatal injuries felt like you fell off your hoverbike, but all the small injuries were stuck as small injuries.

"It's not funny, Haruko!" He pouted at me and I couldn't hold in my laughter anymore.

Then, there were several thumping sounds coming from above us.

We both looked up and saw several oval-shaped yellow objects falling down towards us.

I moved out of the way easily, but since Kirito was sitting down with a headache, he got caught in the mango avalanche.

"Itai, itai!" Kirito winced with every drop of a mango.

By the time the mangoes finally stopped falling, I was rolling on the ground, laughing my heart out.

"I-it hurts, Kirito!" I cried, clutching my stomach. I sat up and wiping my tears of mirth, then point at him. "Probably not as much as that huge bump on your head though!"

The blackette simply huffed at me as the large, cone-shaped bump on his head flashed a painful red.

"OMG, I'm going to call you, _Kirinto[4]_ with that horn on your head!"

"Are we going to conquer that dungeon or not?!" Kirito snarled at me.

I put my hands up in surrender. "Fine, fine."

Kirito lifted his arms up and I used my own to pull him up, digging the heels of my boots into the soil for balance.

He was soon standing up, so I let go of his hands, but then he wobbled slightly, rushing down towards the ground past me.

"Whoa!" I grabbed Kirito's wrist before he could fall to the earthy ground. "Still a little dizzy there, Kirito?"

"Looks like it," Kirito chuckled as I pulled him back to his feet, making the distance between us a bit closer as our noses grazed each other.

I looked down at his feet and put a hand on his shoulder to make sure he was truly steady on his feet. He seemed a bit shaky, in fact, his whole body was shaking slightly.

"You okay now?" I asked as I look up at Kirito, making our noses touch each other once again.

"Y-yeah," He nodded slightly, slightly flustered. A faint blush was noticeable on his face.

Is he still dizzy? I'm pretty sure the mangoes didn't hit him that hard.

I gazed at him deeply and leaned closer. "Are you sure?"

Kirito's face turned redder and he leaned back. "Yeah, I-I'm pretty sure."

"Great, then let's go!" I let go of his wrist and ran deeper into the rainforest. I stopped when I realized Kirito wasn't following and turned around, noticing him to be in a slightly dazed state.

"C'mon, slowpoke!" I yelled and he snapped out of his daze.

"I'm coming, geez!" Kirito started jogging towards me.

"Race you there, Kirinto!" I continued my previous running.

"Hey, wait a- Haruko!" Kirito started sprinting now as I laugh merrily.

"Wow," I stared at the dungeon doors in awe. "I knew it was big, but, really, not _that _big!"

Kirito merely nodded, stuck in a state of shock at the size of the wooden doors.

The dungeon's entrance was in the middle of a Kapok tree, and the doors were _pretty_ big. About the size of Illfang the Kobold Lord to be exact.

I looked at Kirito and he looked at me. Simultaneously, we nodded and pushed the dungeon doors open together.

The cave was surprisingly small, the walls and floor was lined with large ivy leaves and empty strangely enough, no monsters coming to kill us, and no treasure chest, neither open nor close.

"What?" Kirito deadpanned while I blinked several times in disbelief.

"Kirito…" I drawled, looking at him blankly. "I thought you told me that we were the first people to enter this dungeon."

"Well, that's what Argo told me!" He retorted.

I huffed and put my hands on my hips, "It seems Argo is starting to lack in her talent."

Kirito slided his hand down to open the menu, sending a message to Argo about the dungeon.

I was fiddling around with my sword when I noticed something glimmer for a split second in the back of the cave, behind some large vines.

"Hey, Kirito, did you see that?" I turned to look at Kirito.

"See what?" He looked up from his menu.

I sighed, "Never mind."

He returned to his typing as I squinted at where I had last seen the gleam.

The sparkle returns again and I pointed at it. "There! Did you see that now?!"

Kirito didn't even look up this time. "You're just playing with me, aren't you, Haruko?"

I pouted and crossed my arms, "I'm not!"

He continued to type, "Just use your searching skill."

"But I haven't leveled it up that much!" I exclaimed, throwing my hands into the air.

Kirito finally looked up at me, "Look, I'll check it out once I send this message to Argo and she replies back, okay?"

I exhaled heavily, "Fine."

With that, he tried to finish typing his message.

I resumed my act of playing around with my blade and noticed the glimmer once more.

I turned to look at Kirito who was still typing. Who takes this long to type, "Your information may be off?!" Oh right, Kirito!

I turned back to the glimmer that continued to flicker back and forth and looked around the dungeon.

Well there are no monsters inside, so it wouldn't hurt to take a look…

I timidly took a step forward into the dungeon and nothing happens. The same reaction for another step. And another. Soon, I was in a full-blown stride towards whatever was creating that troublesome sparkle.

I was right in front of the vines, and crouched down to look at the mystery item closer. I pondered whether or not it would be a good idea to grab whatever was lurking behind them. Not to mention the vines had large thorns that would no doubt injure me when I went to retrieve the item. Eh, what to do…

Oh wait, I have a sword.

I pulled my sword out of its sheath and slice and dice the vines into little pieces.

Not…

My sword broke on contact with the vines surprisingly.

I swore under my breath and heard a ping that signals a new message.

"Ah, Argo responded back to me!" Kirito noted, who apparently did not notice what just transpired with me.

"Oh really?" I laughed nervously. "That's great!"

That sword was the only one I had, never bothered to get another one since the Beta Test was only going to be two months, so I just used all my drops to upgrade that one. What a great idea that was!

Well, I wasn't hoping to use it, but I suppose I have to.

With a sigh, I slided down my hand to open my menu and selected an item in my inventory. A lantern materialized and I grabbed the handle on the top of it.

Lanterns use their durability quickly and the only way to renew it is to gather lots of fat from beast-type monsters. Really tiresome to make to, but the light they create is worth it.

Getting closer to the item behind the vines, I notice it was a sword, strangely enough. A completely white sword.

"Hey, Kirito!" I called to him while still staring at my find. "The sparkle was a sword!"

"A sword?" He replied in disbelief. "You're kidding."

"Nope!" I turned to look at Kirito, who was still reading whatever Argo sent him. "It's strange how the players before us didn't grab it; I mean it looks kind of pretty."

He nodded his head in response and I turned back to the sword.

Noticing a gap in the vines that was large enough for my hand to fit in without the possible harm of thorns scratching me, I put my right arm in trying to grab the sword.

From behind me, I heard Kirito lightly gasp and shouted to me, "No Haruko, don't!"

"Eh?" I turned back to Kirito, who was running towards me, and slightly grazed the blade with the tips of my fingers.

A brilliant light shines from the sword, making me yelp and drop my lantern, the item falling to the ground and breaking into pixels.

Some unknown force pushed Kirito and I slowly back, then suddenly sending both of us into the air. Kirito lands outside, far from the dungeon entrance, and me into the inner dungeon wall near the center of the cave.

"Ow…" I rubbed the back of my head. "Now I know how Kirito felt when I woke him up."

Looking up, I noticed the vines that originally caged the sword, suddenly move and thrash about, lashing out at the ground and making small chasms in the earth.

"Haruko, get out of there right now!" Kirito yelled from outside of the dungeon.

"Okay!" I sprinted towards the entrance, towards Kirito, towards his figure that was running towards me.

But the vines were faster.

They shot past me and hitted the doors, pushing them close with a loud thud, right as I reach them.

"Darn it!" I pounded at the door with my fists.

"Haruko!" I heard Kirito call from the other side and something hits the door, making thuds that vibrate against it. "It's a trap!"

"No, really?" I replied sarcastically. "I thought it was just a plant scared of its privacy!"

The dungeon is just a player killing trap," Kirito continued. "That's why there were no monsters and that sword was left behind. Argo just got the news!"

"Well, that's great to know and all, Kirito, but…" I sighed, sliding to the ground and leaning my back against the door. "I'm still in here."

"Don't worry, I'll get you out of there, okay?" He said, panicky a bit.

"It's fine, I'll just teleport out." I smiled faintly at the frightened tone in his voice.

"Neither of us _have _crystals, remember?" His muffled voice sounds through the wood.

"Oh right, forest…" I laughed nervously.

"I'll go get some help." Kirito stated.

"It's okay, Kirito, I'll just respawn in Grandon City[5] when I die." I remarked. "Besides, you and I both know how I hate to be the damsel in distress and you don't have _any _social skills whatsoever."

"Well, I guess I better go learn some." With that, I hear soft muffled footsteps that were moving away from me.

I exhaled deeply and shook my head. "Mattaku[6]."

That guy tries too hard sometimes. But then again, he knew that I had claustrophobia. A fear of closed spaces that could quickly escalate if he couldn't get me out in time. I could panic and faint if it became too long. I could go psycho and possibly kill myself. And Kirito knows all of this. After all, I've done that before, right in front of him too.

From behind me, I heard some movement and jumped to the side as a vine slammed into the ground where I previously was.

"So you finally decided to attack me, huh?" With a breathy laugh, I did a mix of several front and back handsprings to avoid the incoming vines, keeping my eyes trained on them.

Noticeably, although the vines attacked me, they still somewhat guarded the sword.

I hummed in thought as I continuously dodged the vines.

"You know, I wonder what happens if," I holded the last letter for a while and jumped into the air and over the vines. "I grab that white sword you're trying to guard there!" Then snatched up the said item.

The vines stopped moving and for a split second, I was relieved. But that was before they went ballistic and something big just bursted out of the ground.

"You have got to be kidding me," I sweat dropped, looking up at the behemoth of a monster that now shadowed me.

The creature was a big flower with dirty white petals lined with putrid yellow teeth and obviously the green thorny vines that tried to kill me earlier. It took up like half of the room, the half that I was currently occupying.

I breathed heavily as I was pressed up against the wall.

"Stop it, body!" I smacked my hand at my heart, trying to stop its frantic beating. "Not the time to flip out about claustrophobia!"

I looked up higher to see the name _Torpid Carnation[7]_, a red diamond cursor, and 3 health bars.

"Chikusho[8]," I muttered under my breath. "This is _so_ not going to be fun."

With a loud bellow, the plant shot vines in my direction.

"Yup, definitely not fun." Using one hand, I fended off the incoming vines with the white blade.

A torrent of vines followed me as I did zigzag jumps between the plant and wall.

I turned to look at the vines behind me and smirked, "You can't catch me, you overgrown houseplant!"

I laughed and turned back around to the front, only to get smacked into a vine and fell to the ground, getting a face full of dirt.

"Itai…" I lifted my head and rubbed my nose.

Another vine grabbed me around the waist, pinning my arms to my side.

"Ok, I may have spoken too soon." I struggled in the Torpid Carnation's tight grip.

As I moved closer to the mouth of the monster, I tossed the sword into the air and caught it, changing the position of the blade from downright to upright and stabbed the vine that was holding me. It recoiled and I dropped down to the ground, miraculously landing safely on two legs.

Remember when I said the vines went ballistic when I grabbed the sword? Well that was just a minor fit; this was the mother of all tantrums.

The plant roared and goes into frenzy mode, since it had apparently gotten down to its last health bar.

Pieces of rock and ivy fell from the ceiling as the plant used its vines to rapidly whip everything around it.

"Freaking super plant!" I snapped furiously and decided to slice the vines that were too close for comfort to me and ran around the plant.

My mind, thinking back to how my own sword broke on contact with the vines, it quickly came up with a plan.

"Hey, over here!" I waved at the Torpid Carnation, hoping to get its attention.

The flower turned to me. "Yeah you, you daisy!"

I maked a "come at me, bro" gesture with my hand and smirked, "Take your best shot."

It shot several vines in my direction and I ran underneath the plant to avoid them.

They still tried to reach me and I deeply pierced the vine closest to me with the sword, making the plant withdraw that particular vine with me along with it.

I took the sword out of the vine when we were directly above the mouth and dropped, feet first, taking a trip down the Torpid Carnation's gullet.

As I go down, I sticked my sword into the flower's throat, using the force from the dive to slice the throat.

With its final health bar hitting zero, the Torpid Carnation gave one last dying screech of pain before vanishing into multiple bright clusters of light. Somewhere, in its final cry, I heard some other noise mixed in there and the noise still continued to this moment.

Oh, it's my own scream. Whether it was of victory from defeating the monster or fear of almost dying, I don't remember, but I know that I felt that I had never been so alive until that moment.

Never.

**I know, I know! I feel how evil I am for ending the chapter here too, but it felt really good ending it here too, so I suppose you guys have to wait until the next chapter to find out why Haruko hates Kirito so much ( ^ω^ ) **

**R & R and please stay tuned~! **

**Until next time! ** **～（ゝ。**∂**）**

[1] Daijoubu = Are you okay?

[2] Urusai = Shut up

[3] Itai = It hurts

[4] Kirinto = A play on words with Kirito and Kirin, which is basically East Asia's version of a unicorn.

[5] Grandon City = Supposed Eternal World name for Floor 5

[6] Mattaku = Jeez, really, basically a general expression of annoyance

[7] Torpid Gladiola = An overgrown white flower that is the Midlevel Boss for Floor 6.

[8] Chikusho = Damn it, in general


End file.
